Land Transfer Tax Calculator

Who pays land transfer tax in Canada?

The buyer pays land transfer tax. It is charged on the person acquiring the property, not the seller, and in most provinces it falls due on closing day, when the transfer of title is registered. Outside Quebec, your lawyer or notary normally collects it from you with the rest of your closing funds and pays it on your behalf.

The tax is provincial, so the bill depends on where the property is, not where you live. Ontario, British Columbia, Quebec and Manitoba all charge a sliding-scale tax on the price or fair market value. Toronto is the only city in this calculator that adds a second, municipal tax on top of the provincial one. Alberta has no land transfer tax: it charges a land titles registration fee instead, which is $50 plus $5 per $5,000 of value under the fee schedule in effect from 1 October 2026.

Land transfer tax compared across Canada

The same home can cost several times more in transfer tax depending on location. The table runs three prices through each calculator with no first-time buyer relief. Montréal uses its own higher rates above $500,000, so it has a separate column.

How land transfer tax is calculated

Every province here uses marginal brackets, like income tax: each slice of the price is taxed at its own rate and the slices are added together. Ontario’s top residential rate is 2.5% on the part above $2,000,000. B.C. charges 2% on most of a typical price. Quebec’s general schedule tops out at 1.5%, and Manitoba’s at 2% above $200,000.

What the rate is applied to also differs. Ontario taxes the value of the consideration, which includes any mortgage you assume from the seller. B.C. and Manitoba use fair market value on the date of registration. Quebec uses the highest of the price paid, the price written in the deed and the municipal assessment multiplied by the comparative factor.

When and how the tax is paid

• Ontario and Toronto: payable when the transfer is registered. Your lawyer registers it electronically in Teraview, Ontario’s land registration system, completes the land transfer tax statements there and pays both taxes from your closing funds. If a transfer is not registered within 30 days, the buyer must file a return and pay within 30 days of closing.
• British Columbia: your lawyer or notary files a property transfer tax return through B.C.’s web-based system, and the tax is due when the title is registered at the Land Title Office.
• Quebec: the notary does not collect it. The municipality sends a bill after the sale, often weeks later. Montréal requires one payment within 30 days of the bill.
• Manitoba: the buyer pays when the transfer of title is registered at a land titles office, together with the registration fee. Manitoba Finance directs questions about the tax to Teranet Manitoba in Winnipeg.

First-time buyer rebates and exemptions compared

Relief for first-time buyers ranges from generous to none. Each scheme has its own definition of “first-time” and its own move-in rules. If you have a spouse, their ownership history usually counts too.

Foreign buyer taxes and the federal purchase ban

Foreign buyers face extra taxes in Ontario, Toronto and parts of B.C. These are charged in addition to the ordinary land transfer tax. Ontario’s Non-Resident Speculation Tax is 25% of the price anywhere in the province. Toronto adds a 10% Municipal Non-Resident Speculation Tax, so a foreign buyer of an $800,000 Toronto home faces $280,000 in speculation taxes alone. B.C. charges 20% additional property transfer tax in five regional districts, including Metro Vancouver and the Capital Regional District.

Separately, the federal Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Non-Canadians Act stops most non-citizens and non-permanent residents from buying homes in Canadian cities and large towns. It was extended to 1 January 2027, with exceptions for some work-permit holders, students, refugees and spouses of Canadians. Check CMHC’s page for its current status.

Common land transfer tax mistakes

• Forgetting the Toronto tax. At $1,000,000, a Toronto buyer pays $32,950 against $16,475 in Mississauga or Vaughan.
• Assuming “first-time” means you have never owned in Canada. Ontario, Toronto and B.C. all disqualify you if you have owned a home anywhere in the world, and in Ontario and Toronto a spouse’s ownership during your marriage counts too.
• Not budgeting for the Quebec bill. It arrives after you have moved in, and Québec City charges 7% interest plus a 5% penalty if you pay late.
• Missing a B.C. move-in deadline. The first-time and newly built exemptions require you to move in within 92 days and live there until the first anniversary.